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Fast Track Pathway Tool for NHS Continuing Healthcare November 2012 (Revised)

Fast Track Pathway Tool for NHS Continuing Healthcare

November 2012 (Revised)

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http://www.dh.gov.uk/health/2012/11/continuing-healthcare-revisions/

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Policy

For Recipient's Use

Fast Track Pathway Tool for NHS Continuing Healthcare November

2012 (Revised)

LS2 7UE

0

NHS Continuing Healthcare Policy Team

Quarry House

Quarry Hill

Leeds

The Fast Track Pathway Tool should be used where an appropriate

clinician considers that a person should be fast tracked for NHS

Continuing Healthcare because that person has a rapidly deteriorating

condition and the condition may be entering a terminal phase. This

revised tool accompanies the National Framework for NHS Continuing

Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care November 2012 (Revised),

the NHS Continuing Healthcare Checklist November 2012 (Revised)

and Decision Support Tool for NHS Continuing Healthcare November

2012 (Revised).

With immediate effect

Department of Health

28 November 2012

PCT Cluster CEs, NHS Trust CEs, SHA Cluster CEs, Care Trust CEs,

Foundation Trust CEs , Medical Directors, Directors of Nursing, Local

Authority CEs, Directors of Adult SSs, PCT Cluster Chairs, NHS Trust

Board Chairs, Special HA CEs, Directors of Finance, GPs, Emergency

Care Leads, Clinical Commissioning Groups, NHS Commissioning

Board

Communications Leads

National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded

Nursing Care November 2012 (Revised), NHS Continuing Healthcare

Checklist 2012 November (Revised) and Decision Support Tool for

NHS Continuing Healthcare November 2012 (Revised)

Fast Track Pathway Tool for NHS Continuing Healthcare July 2009

This is the Fast Track Pathway Tool for NHS Continuing Healthcare to

be used with immediate effect by PCTs and from 1 April 2013 by CCGs



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Fast Track Pathway Tool for NHS

Continuing Healthcare




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Contents

Contents………………………………………………………………………………………………….4 Notes……………………………………………………………………………………………………...5 Appropriate clinicians…………………………………………………………………………………...5 Duty of CCGs or the Board…………………………………………………………………………….6 Fast Track Pathway Tool……………………………………………………………………………….9 Equality Monitoring Form……………………………………………………………………………..12



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Fast Track Pathway Tool for NHS Continuing Healthcare November 2012 Notes

1. This revised tool accompanies the National Framework for NHS continuing healthcare and NHS-funded nursing care (the National Framework) and the NHS Continuing Healthcare Checklist and Decision Support Tool. This is the version that CCGs and the Board should use from 1 April 2013, however PCTs should use this version with immediate effect. Please use the tool in conjunction with the National Framework guidance.

2. It reflects the new NHS framework and structures created by the Health and Social Care Act

2012 effective from 1 April 2013. Standing Rules Regulations1 have been issued under the National Health Service Act 20062 and directions are issued under the Local Authority Social Services Act 1970 in relation to the National Framework.

Appropriate clinicians

3. This tool should be used where an appropriate clinician3 considers that a person should be

fast tracked for NHS Continuing Healthcare because that person has a rapidly deteriorating

condition and the condition may be entering a terminal phase. The person may need NHS

Continuing Healthcare funding to enable their needs to be urgently met (e.g. to enable them

to go home to die or to provide appropriate end of life support to be put in place either in

their own home or in a care setting).

4. The Fast Track Pathway Tool should be used by an appropriate clinician to outline the

reasons for the fast-track decision. Appropriate clinicians are those who are, pursuant to the

National Health Service Act 2006, responsible for an individual’s diagnosis, treatment or

care and are registered medical practitioners (such as consultants, registrars, GPs) or

registered nurses. These can include senior clinicians employed in voluntary and

independent sector organisations that have a specialist role in end-of-life needs (for

example, hospices) where the organisation’s services are commissioned by the NHS.

Others involved in supporting those with end of life needs, such as in wider voluntary and

independent sector organisations, may identify that the individual has needs for which use

of the Fast Track Tool would be appropriate. They should contact an appropriate clinician

and ask that consideration be given to completion of the tool. In all cases the clinician

1 The National Health Service Commissioning Board and Clinical Commissioning Groups (Responsibilities and

Standing Rules) Regulations 2012 (the Standing Rules Regulations) 2 National Health Service Act 2006 (c.41), as amended by the Health and Social Care Act 2012

(c. 7) 3 As defined in regulation 23(12) of the Standing Rules Regulations



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should have detailed knowledge of the patient’s needs. They should also have an

appropriate level of knowledge and experience in dealing with the individual’s health needs,

such that they are able to reasonably comment on whether the individual’s condition may be

entering a terminal phase.

5. The completed tool should be supported by a prognosis, if available, but strict time limits

basing eligibility on an individual being considered to have a specified expected length of

life remaining should not be imposed: it is the responsibility of the appropriate clinician to

make a decision based on the relevant facts of the case.

6. Appropriate clinicians should complete the attached fast-track documentation and set out

how their knowledge and evidence about the patient’s needs leads them to consider that

the patient has a rapidly deteriorating condition and that the condition may be entering a

terminal phase.

7. Whilst the Fast Track tool itself determines eligibility, a care plan will be required which

describes the immediate needs to be met and the patient’s preferences. This care plan

should be provided with the Fast Track documentation, or as soon as practicable thereafter,

in order for a clinical commissioning group (CCG) or the National Health Service

Commissioning Board (the Board) to commission appropriate care.

Duty of CCGs or the Board

8. CCGs and the NHS Commissioning Board (the Board) will assume responsibilities for NHS CHC from 1 April 2013.

9. The Board will assume commissioning responsibilities for some specified groups of people

(for example, prisoners and military personnel). It therefore follows that the Board will have statutory responsibility for commissioning NHS CHC, where necessary, for those groups for whom it has commissioning responsibility. This will include case co-ordination, arranging completion of the decision support tool, decision-making, arranging appropriate care packages, providing or ensuring the provision of case management support and monitoring and reviewing the needs of individuals. It will also include reviewing decisions with regards to eligibility where an individual wishes to challenge that decision.

10. Where an application is made for a review of a decision made by the Board, it must ensure

that in organising a review of that decision, it makes appropriate arrangements to do so, so as to avoid any conflict of interest.

11. Throughout the Fast Track Tool where a CCG is referred to, the responsibilities will also

apply to the Board (in these limited circumstances). 12. A CCG upon receipt of a completed Fast Track Pathway Tool, must decide that a person is

eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare. Therefore, where a recommendation is made for an urgent package of care via the fast-track process, this should be accepted and actioned immediately by a CCG. It is not appropriate for individuals to experience delay in the delivery of their care package while disputes over recommendations from completed Fast Track Tools are resolved. CCGs should carefully monitor use of the tool and address any specific concerns with clinicians, teams and organisations as a separate matter to arranging the service provision in the individual case.



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13. The purpose of the Fast Track Pathway Tool is to ensure that individuals with a rapidly

deteriorating condition, which may be entering a terminal phase, are supported in their

preferred place of care as quickly as possible. It means that a CCG takes responsibility for

commissioning and funding appropriate care. Once this has happened, a CCG, and its

partners can proceed, where appropriate, with reaching a decision on longer-term NHS

continuing healthcare eligibility. No one who has been identified through the fast-track

process as being eligible for NHS continuing healthcare should have this funding or support

removed without their eligibility being reviewed in accordance with the review processes set

out in the National Framework. The review should include completion of the Decision

Support Tool (DST) by a multidisciplinary team, including a recommendation on eligibility.

This overall process, including how personal information will be shared between different

organisations and healthcare professionals involved in delivering care, should be carefully

and sensitively explained to the individual and, where appropriate, their family. Careful

decision making is essential to avoid the undue distress that might result from a person

moving in and out of NHS continuing healthcare eligibility within a very short period of time.

Where an individual receiving services through use of the Fast Track Pathway Tool is

expected to die in the very near future, CCGs should continue to take responsibility for the

care package until the end of life.

14. It should be noted that this is not the only way that individuals can qualify for NHS continuing

healthcare towards the end of their lives. The DST encourages practitioners to document

deterioration (this could include both observed and likely deterioration) in a person’s

condition to allow them to take this into account when determining eligibility using the DST.

However, this should not be used as a means of circumventing use of the Fast Track

Pathway Tool when individuals satisfy the criteria for its use. Where deterioration can be

reasonably anticipated to take place before the next planned review, including where the

individual is presently asymptomatic, this should also be taken into account in making a

decision on eligibility.

15. There may be some situations where the fast-track process is later found to have been

inappropriate, for example because the decision was made after an acute episode of a

condition which was subsequently found to be treatable. In such situations the completion of

the DST may lead to a decision to cease NHS continuing healthcare funding. However, no

one who has been identified through the fast-track process as being eligible for NHS

continuing healthcare should have this funding removed without the completion of a full

DST, taking account of any deterioration that is present or expected. The National

Framework states:

Neither the NHS nor an LA should unilaterally withdraw from an existing funding

arrangement without a joint reassessment of the individual, and without first consulting one

another and the individual about the proposed change of arrangement. It is essential that

alternative funding arrangements are agreed and put into effect before any withdrawal of

existing funding, in order to ensure continuity of care. Any proposed change should be put

in writing to the individual by the organisation that is proposing to make such a change. If



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agreement between the LA and NHS cannot be reached on the proposed change, the

local disputes procedure should be invoked, and current funding and care management

responsibilities should remain in place until the dispute has been resolved4.

16. CCGs should audit use of the Fast Track Pathway Tool carefully and discuss any concerns

over its use with organisations, clinicians and teams as appropriate. However, this should

be carried out separately from decision making in any individual case.

17. CCGs and LAs should operate person-centred commissioning arrangements so that

unnecessary changes of provider or of care package do not take place purely because the

responsible commissioner has changed from a CCG to a LA or vice versa.

18. NHS continuing healthcare assessments, care planning and commissioning for those with

end-of-life needs should be carried out in an integrated manner as part of the individual’s

overall end-of-life care pathway. They should reflect the approaches set out in the National

End of Life Care Strategy5 with full account being taken of each patient’s preferences

through a needs-led approach, including those preferences set out in their advance care

plan.

19. The equality monitoring data form should be completed by the patient who is the subject of

the Fast Track Pathway Tool. Where the patient needs support to complete the form, this

should be offered by the clinician completing the Fast Track Pathway Tool. The clinician

should forward the completed data form to the appropriate location, in accordance with the

relevant CCG processes for processing equality data. If the form has not been completed,

the referring clinician should be asked to arrange with the patient for it to be completed.

However, this should not delay consideration of the fast-track recommendation.

4 Paragraph 143 of National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care

5 http://www.endoflifecareforadults.nhs.uk/



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NHS Continuing Healthcare Fast Track Tool

To enable immediate provision of a package

of NHS continuing healthcare

Date of completion of the Fast Track Tool _____________________________

Name D.O.B.

NHS number:

Permanent address and Current location (i.e. name of

telephone number hospital ward etc)

Gender _____________________________

Please ensure that the equality monitoring form at the end of the Fast Track Tool is

completed

Contact details of referring clinician (name, role, organisation, telephone number, email

address)

(please turn over)



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NHS Continuing Healthcare Fast Track Tool

To enable immediate provision of a package

of NHS continuing healthcare

The individual fulfils the following criterion:

He or she has a rapidly deteriorating condition and the condition may be entering a terminal

phase. For the purposes of Fast Track eligibility this constitutes a primary health need. No

other test is required.

Brief outline of reasons for the fast-tracking recommendation:

Please set out below the details of how your knowledge and evidence of the patient’s needs

mean that you consider that they fulfil the above criterion. This may include evidence from

assessments, diagnosis, prognosis where these are available, together with details of both

immediate and anticipated future needs and any deterioration that is present or expected.

When outlining reasons why a clinician considers that a person has a rapidly deteriorating

condition that may be entering a terminal phase, the clinician should consider the following

definition of a primary health need:

Primary health need arises where nursing or other health services required by the person are

(a) where the person is, or is to be, accommodated in a care home, more than incidental or

ancillary to the provision of accommodation which a social services authority is, or would

be but for the person’s means, under a duty to provide; or

(b) of a nature beyond which a social services authority whose primary responsibility is to

provide social services could be expected to provide.

(continue overleaf)



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Please continue on separate sheet where needed. This should include the patient’s name and

NHS number, and also be signed and dated by the referring clinician.

Name and signature of referring clinician Date

Name and signature confirming approval by CCG Date



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About you (the patient) – equality monitoring

Please provide us with some information about yourself. This will help us to understand whether

everyone is receiving fair and equal access to NHS continuing healthcare. All the information

you provide will be kept completely confidential by the Clinical Commissioning Group. No

identifiable information about you will be passed on to any other bodies, members of the public

or press.

1 What is your sex? Tick one box only.

Male

Female

Transgender

2 Which age group applies to you? Tick one box only.

0-15

16-24

25-34

35-44

45-54

55-64

65-74

75-84

85+

3 Do you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010? Section 6 of the Equality Act 2010 defines a person with a disability as someone who has a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on that person’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. Tick one box only.

Yes

No

4 What is your ethnic group? Tick one box only.

A White

British

Irish

Any other White background, write below

B Mixed

White and Black Caribbean

White and Black African

White and Asian

Any other Mixed background, write below

C Asian, or Asian British

Indian

Pakistani

Bangladeshi

Any other Asian background, write below

D Black, or Black British

Caribbean

African

Any other Black background, write below

E Chinese, or other ethnic group

Chinese

Any other, write below

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5 What is your religion or belief? Tick one box only. Christian includes Church of Wales, Catholic, Protestant and all other Christian denominations.

None

Christian

Buddhist

Hindu

Jewish

Muslim

Sikh

Other, write below

6 Which of the following best describes your sexual orientation? Tick one box only. Only answer this question if you are aged 16 years or over.

Heterosexual / Straight

Lesbian / Gay Woman

Gay Man

Bisexual

Prefer not to answer

Other, write below

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